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Re: Bee Informed National Survey

So I've had a few hours to mull this over and I've come to a few conclusions. (How accurate they are is anybody's guess!)

It seems like however we choose to manage our hives--treat, don't treat, change out the foundation, use it forever, etc--the results are basically the same. So I coming away from this survey thinking that: 1. We should do whatever feels comfortable knowing that, statistically anyhow, nobody is getting any better results with their way than we are with ours. 2. The success or failure of a hive STILL depends mostly on the skill of the beekeeper in recognizing what is going on in the hive and around it, interpreting what that means to the hive, and being able to implement whatever the hive needs to survive both short term and long term. And 3. Our skill improves as we go along. The more we learn, the better we get and the more of our hives get to survive our education!

As always, JMO

Rusty

Last edited by Rusty Hills Farm; 01-10-2013 at 12:11 PM.
Reason: edited because I cannot spell!

Re: Bee Informed National Survey

That was my theory. Bees don't heat the hive, therefore insulation of little value. Insulated lids help though, I suspect due to elimination of condensation on the roof, dripping onto the cluster, not because it keeps heat in.

Re: Bee Informed National Survey

The same goes for treatments if you look at some of the previous data. Sure, unload some dough to 'save' all your hives, but your mortality rate might actually go down by like 5%, maybe 10% with the best ones. What this survey shows in very basic terms is that every year, a third of your hives are going to die on average.

Re: Bee Informed National Survey

I guess I've been really lucky so far. I've treated some, not treated others, bought the dreaded packages, etc. and in total, in 3 yrs, am 29/30. I almost feel like I'd be a more educated beekeeper if I'd experienced more problems.

Re: Bee Informed National Survey

Just to remind everyone, the survey starts tomorrow. Please participate. The more people participate, the more accurate the results are. And from what I understand, if they get 300 results from a single state, they can give results for that individual states.

Re: Bee Informed National Survey

The new ABJ (April) has a good article with Dennis Van Engelsdorp and the Bee Informed Partnership (BIP) survey.

EVERYONE NEEDS TO PARTICIPATE BECAUSE IF THERE ARE AT LEAST 300 DIFFERENT PARTICIPANTS PER STATE, STATE SPECIFIC RESULTS CAN BE BROKEN DOWN.

If you belong to bee club it is essential that you make others in the club aware of this survey. The survey runs from today until 4/15 I believe. Also, remember that the survey is epidemiological based study. Again, if you don't understand what that is and how to extrapolate the results I urge you to read the April ABJ where Dennis Van Engelsdorp explains very plainly what that entails and means. No matter how big or small of a beekeeper you are....PARTICIPATE